HCMC – Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi announced at a press conference today, September 3, that Japan would donate a total of 440,000 doses of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine to Vietnam, Thailand and Taiwan this month.
Motegi said the vaccine donation decision was made after assessing new Covid-19 cases, healthcare systems, vaccination progress and the demands for Covid-19 vaccines of Japanese citizens in Vietnam, Thailand and Taiwan, the Vietnam News Agency reported.
Vietnam, Thailand and Taiwan are accelerating their vaccination campaigns but the vaccination rates there remain low due to the shortages of vaccines.
Therefore, the Japanese Government expected the donation would help locals and Japanese people there get vaccinated, thus reducing the risk of exposure to the coronavirus which causes the disease Covid-19.
Japan donated nearly three million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine to Vietnam in June and July.
Besides the vaccine, the Japanese Government has given US$41 million in technical assistance to Vietnam and 24 other countries to combat Covid.
